Talk:Abyssinian/@comment-39625347-20200105215717
I write a description for all 24 breeds; Abyssinian Fur Mid-length or short fur with six to ten evenly spaced rosettes (also called swirls, whorls or cowlicks) on it's back, haunches and front, sometimes on head. The Abyssinian Satin is another breed of guinea pig. Because of hollow shafts of hair, light can pass through their fur, giving them a lustrous, glossy, reflective, shiny sheen to their coats. Ridgeback Abyssinians with a upstanding ridge of fur on their spines are another variety of Aby. Colours Any colours and/or patterns. Health & Care Abyssinians live five to six years, but this can be impacted by lifestyle, genetics and diet. Like all guinea pigs, it needs daily vitamin C in it's diet. Because of their fur, hot temperatures may be bad for them. They should not be bathed or come in contact with water other than for drinking. Water should be in the water bottle, not a bowl. Vitamin C should never be put into the water, because the cavy may not drink. The water bottle should be checked daily for clogs, since it has clogged for Fred and we had to replace it. Vitamin C can come in biscuits or drops to put on the hay or food pellets. Some foods such as kale and strawberries have a lot of vitamins, but feed in limited amounts. Cavies should have a large cage with enough space for however many guinea pigs you plan on keeping, fleece or large paper bedding, lots of hay - usually timothy hay - as well as food pellets and water. Because of their cowlicks, Abyssinians may get matted and/or dirty fur. They have to be groomed with a soft-bristled brush. They have rough fur and it may be harder to brush them because of the cowlicks. Every guinea pig should be brushed at least once a week to once a day, or multiple times a day. Guinea pigs' need their nails trimmed without cutting the quick about once a month. If they have dark brown or black claws, a light may help to see which part is the quick and what is hollow. Most claws are white and some paws may have mixed colours, which is not acceptabled in showing. Fred has three white-clawed paws and one brown-clawed hind-paw. To give a guinea pig a health-check, gently grab it behind the front-paws and flip it over. Check the limbs, run your hand through the fur for bumps and flip it back over. Check the nose for any discharge as well as the ears, nose and teeth for any injuries or illnesses. Showing If you want to show an Aby, it must not have random markings or small pathces of white. Claws must be the same colour of the rest of the paw. There should be four toes on each frontpaw and three toes on each hindpaw. They can not have any health problems or missing eyes, ears or limbs. Show guinea pigd cannot be fixed (spayed or neutered). Check with your local breeder/judge to see what is acceptable. Personality & Overview While every guinea pig is different and unique, most rodents will be timid, skittish and shy at first. This is because they are prey animals and you have to let them get used to you first. After that, they are really good cuddlers that love to explore, be pet and be held. You can bond with guinea pigs by playing with them, brushing them and petting them. Make sure that your room(s) for guinea pig roaming is safe and does not have any wires or things that can harm or scare a guinea pig. Make sure that there are no animals or other people that may scare or injure the piggy. Another option is to get a large playpen for playtime with the pig, as well as pigloos/hideouts and safe toys for the guinea pig to play with. Abyssinians in general are a bold, playful and friendly outgoing purebreed that prefers to be company rather than handled. Guinea pigs with trauma or a bad past may take longer to warm-up than other pigs. Make sure you give the pigs enough fruit and veggies. Some can choke or poison the guinea pig, such as celery and potatoes. If you give them too much of one, it can cause health problems. For example, too many carrots can give diabetes and too much spinach can give kidney stone. Once a pig gets sick, it is usually too late. Even with medicine, they quickly pass away. If they fall from a heigth, from a few inches to many feet, it can break their spines and kill them. This is why you should NEVER use a multi-level cage, a wheel or ball. Wire flooring on the bottom of the cage can make their paws bleed. Pigs may also fight, usually over dominance. If they start bleeding, you should break it up though they are usually social herd pigs. Make sure you spay a sow (female) if you plan to keep it with boars (males) or else there will be a lot of fighting. Overall, Abyssinians are a common mid to short -length furred breed of cavy with an average of eight rosettes on their fur. They can come with any colour combinations. They can also be Satin, making their fur gleamy and reflective. Satin guinea pigs have a lot of health problems, though.